Moscow, Russia, Jan 15, 2014 / 03:03 pm (CNA).- According to a Russian daily, Mikhail Kalashnikov wrote a letter more than six months before his death expressing repentance for his design of the AK-47 assault rifle. “My spiritual pain is unbearable,” Kalashnikov wrote in a letter to the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Kirill I, according to the Jan. 13 issue of Izvestia. “I keep having the same unsolved question: since my rifle killed people, can it be that I... a … [Read more...]

Seattle, Wash., Jan 15, 2014 / 11:46 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Controversy over a Seattle-area Catholic school’s treatment of employees who contract same-sex “marriages” is being described as a chance for the school to explain Church teaching and defend the faith. “A Catholic school does great damage by appearing inconsistent or embarrassed by the Catholic faith,” said Patrick Reilly, president of the Cardinal Newman Society, which works to promote Catholic identity … [Read more...]

Vatican City, Jan 15, 2014 / 11:15 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis has named the next bishop of Pueblo, Colorado: Monsignor Stephen J. Berg of Fort Worth, Texas, a trained pianist who became a priest after a career as a business executive. “You will have all I have to give,” Bishop-designate Berg, 62, told the people of his diocese at a Jan. 15 press conference in Pueblo. “I will also give my best to all of my people, especially the Hispanic … [Read more...]

Vatican City, Jan 15, 2014 / 06:09 am (CNA/EWTN News).- During his general audience, Pope Francis continued his reflections on the Sacrament of Baptism, emphasizing that we are called to use the grace we receive in order to become “missionary disciples.” “We are one community, and living together our faith is not an ornament, but rather is something essential for the Christian life ... for testimony and for evangelization,” the Pope explained in his Jan. 15 general … [Read more...]

Glasgow, Scotland, Jan 15, 2014 / 04:10 am (CNA/EWTN News).- A Scottish Catholic education leader is “confident” the government’s proposal for sex education in Catholic schools regarding contraception and homosexual unions will not be implemented. He did, however, characterize the proposal as “a bit mean-spirited.” “The Church has a legal right to provide guidance for Catholic schools in this country. We intend to retain that right, and we’re … [Read more...]

Vatican City, Jan 15, 2014 / 03:51 am (CNA/EWTN News).- An Orange county chef who began feeding impoverished children out of his restaurant in 2005 has created a special project to continue the work, which he hopes to expand to a global level. “Growing up I knew what it was like first hand to be a part of a low income family,” Serato told CNA in a Jan. 14 interview, “so I identified with these kids.” “I experienced many struggles myself as I came from a place … [Read more...]

Colombo, Sri Lanka, Jan 15, 2014 / 02:02 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Catholics in Sri Lanka are celebrating the reception of a reliquary containing a fragment of the arm of St. Sebastian, a martyr of the third century. On Jan. 12, Cardinal Archbishop Malcolm Ranjith of Colombo received the relics at the city's airport, accompanied by officials of the diocesan curia, priests, and Catholic members of the Sri Lankan parliament. The reliquary was brought to Colombo by Msgr. Neville Perera, and … [Read more...]